Blog frogs on the road
By Kristina Loring - May 19, 2010
Toy action figures, transmedia and the future of play.
Make no mistake: The Sandbox Summit at MIT this week is not just child’s play. An exploration for youngsters disguised as grown up product designers, creatives, and academics, the Summit is a collaborative event focused on how media and design influence children’s education and perspectives of society.
Blog frogs on the road
By Kristina Loring - May 13, 2010
Principal Designer Laura Seargeant Richardson will give the keynote “The Medium Doesn’t Matter” at the Sandbox Summit at MIT next week. The focus of her talk is on the increasing importance of involving play across all platforms as an important training ground for kids to understand greater complexity and introduce new ways of seeing. Laura explores how the medium won’t matter for this; it will simply be another toy waiting for interpretation, manipulation and imagination by the child.
The children in the video are creating their own ways of seeing by identifying design solutions using their most sophisticated tool: their imagination.
Blog frogs on the road
By Kristina Loring - April 21, 2010
Can the Wii teach playground rules? Is an e-book the answer to the literacy challenge? What are today’s children learning from playtime and what do toy and game developers need to know to create play experiences that foster 21st century skills? As new technologies and media are embraced by younger children, it is crucial for designers to create tools and toys that will engage them while fostering creativity, education, and, of course, fun.
